System with capsule having sealing means

ABSTRACT

A beverage forming system that includes a capsule for containing beverage ingredients and having an outer surface; a capsule-based beverage producing device provided with a member for injecting a liquid under pressure into the capsule, a member for draining a beverage from the capsule, and an enclosing member transferable from an opened state to a defined closed state, in which the enclosing member encloses the outer surface of the capsule; and a sealing member associated with the capsule and which is compressible when engaged by the enclosing member in the closed state, wherein the sealing member is effective to compensate for the clearance between the enclosing member and the capsule which would otherwise exist when the enclosing member is in its defined closed state. Also, a method for producing a beverage using such a system.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 11/737,560filed Apr. 19, 2007, which is a continuation of Internationalapplication PCT/EP2005/011259 filed Oct. 19, 2005, the entire content ofeach of which is expressly incorporated herein by reference thereto.

BACKGROUND

The present invention generally relates to capsules for containingbeverage-forming ingredients, a beverage producing system for use inconnection with such capsules as well as to methods for producingbeverages using such capsules.

The background of the present invention is the field of capsules whichare adapted to contain beverage or other comestible (e.g., soup)ingredients. By means of an interaction of these ingredients with aliquid, a beverage or other comestibles, such as for example soups, canbe produced. The interaction can be for example an extraction, brewing,dissolution, etc. process. Such a capsule is particularly suited tocontain ground coffee in order to produce a coffee beverage by havinghot water under pressure enter the capsule and draining a coffeebeverage from the capsule.

A capsule as shown in Australian patent application 51,220/73 relates toan apparatus for making coffee beverage from a cartridge in which awater injection device is placed hermetically against the upper side ofthe cartridge. The water injection device includes a seal which isapplied on the upper rim of the capsule.

EP 0361569 A1 does not show a sealed capsule, but instead discloses acoffee filter unit which is not sealed when placed into the coffeemachine but is simply press fitted in a cartridge casing, such thatwater can be poured on a filter paper provided at the open upper side ofthe coffee filter unit. To avoid spilling of water outside the filterunit's upper rim, the peripheral portion of a filter paper is clampedbetween the outer rim of the coffee filter unit wall and the surroundingwall of the machine. Such a design is an device filtering a beverage atatmospheric pressure which is not adapted to withstand the typical waterinjection pressure of e.g., more than 3 bars or even much higherpressure which reigns in the capsule when e.g. an espresso-style coffeeis to be produced.

FR 2617389 describes a capsule-based coffee machine in which a capsuleto be extracted is placed on a capsule holder. The capsule holder isthen rotated bayonet-like, wherein the final rotational position dependson the torque which the user applies on a handle for rotating thecapsule holder. The machine itself does therefore not have a definedclosure position since the final closure position depends on the amountof torque applied by the user. The sealing between the capsule and themachine is therefore not defined by the design of the machine, butarbitrarily depends on the user's handling of the machine. Typically,the higher the rotational force exerted, the more clearance can becompensated. However, such system provides several drawbacks. First ofall, it requires the closing device to remain purely tightened by handand it cannot be otherwise mechanically, electrically or hydraulicallyassisted. It requires a certain strength to screw the capsule holder onthe machine from the user and the user may have difficulties to unscrewthe capsule holder afterwards. Furthermore, the sealing is difficult tocontrol and it may be that the capsule holder is insufficientlytightened so that pressure leakage can occur.

In contrast to the rotational bayonet-style closing according to FR2617389, the present invention relates to machines in which the closureof the parts of the machine which surround the capsule and thus also thesealing is not an arbitrary function of the user's force, but a definedstate which depends on the arrangement of the capsule in the machine.This is, for example, the case in machines in which the final phase ofthe closure movement is essentially an axial (i.e., translational or acurvilinear) but non-rotational movement.

The systems and methods for obtaining fluid comestibles from substancescontaining capsules are for example known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,402,707.The capsule 101 as shown therein in FIG. 1 has a frustroconically-shapedcup 102 which may be filled e.g. with roasted and ground coffee 103 andwhich is closed by a foil-like tear face cover 104 welded and/or crimpedto a flange-like rim which extends laterally from the side-wall of cup102. A capsule holder 111 comprises a flow grill 112 with relief surfaceelement members 113 and an annular chamfered rim 114. The capsule holder111 is accommodated in its support 115 which has a lateral wall 124, anda bore 127 for the passage of extracted coffee beverage.

As can be seen from FIG. 1, the extraction system further comprises awater injector 107 having a water inlet channel 120 and an annularelement 108 with an internal recess of which the shape substantiallycorresponds to the outer shape of the capsule. On its outer part, thebell member 108 comprises a spring 122 holding a ring 123 for releasingthe capsule on completion of extraction.

In operation, a capsule 101 is placed in the capsule holder 111. Thewater injector 107 perforates the upper face of the cup 102. The lowertear face 104 of the capsule rests on the radially arranged members 113of the capsule holder 111. The water is injected through the channel 120of the water injector 107 and impinges on the bed 103 of coffee. Thepressure in the capsule 101 increases and the tear face 104 increasinglyfollows the shape of the radial opening relief members 113. When theconstituent material of the tear face reaches its breaking stress, thetear face tears along the relief members. The extracted coffee flowsthrough the orifices of the flow grill 112 and is recovered in acontainer (not shown) beneath the bore 127.

The principles of this extraction process as far as it can be maintainedin connection with the present invention can be summarized as follows:

a sealed capsule is inserted in capsule holder;

the capsule holder is then associated with a water injection portion ofthe machine such that an annular element (108 in FIG. 4) surrounds thecapsule;

in a first wall of the capsule at least one opening is generated, and

water entering the capsule through the opening in the first wall isinteracting with the ingredients in the interior of the capsule and thethus produced beverage is then drained from at least a second opening iscreated in the second wall.

The ingredients in the capsule constitute the “bottleneck” of the flowpath of the water and will therefore cause a pressure drop between theupstream and the downstream side of the liquid flow through the capsule,which pressure drop will even increase during the interaction betweenthe liquid and the ingredients for example due to a swelling of theingredients. Correspondingly it has to be assured that the only waterflow is actually taking place through the interior of the capsule (arrowA1) and that no water can flow from the water injector into theinterstice between the annular enclosing member 108 and the exterior ofthe capsule 101 and then to the draining bore 127 of the device. Thearrow A2 illustrates this undesired external water flow path. With otherwords, any water flow exterior to the capsule 101 has to be stopped (orat least hindered to a substantial degree) by a sealing engagement beingpositioned in the interstice between the annular member 108 and thecapsule 101 and in the flow path between the water injector and thebeverage-draining bore. In the prior art embodiment shown in FIG. 1 suchsealing engagement can be achieved by the pinching engagement betweenthe annular member 108, the flange-like rim of the side wall of thecapsule 101 and the capsule holder.

In case the sealing engagement is not working properly and water isflowing outside the capsule, no pressure sufficient to cause the tearingof the tear face will be built up inside the capsule, or alternatively,a too low pressure will be causing partial tearing of the tear face andtherefore only a poor extraction of the substance, consequently, leadingto the delivery of a low quality beverage. In such a scenario water willbe drained from the beverage production device without having interactedor fully interacted under sufficient pressure conditions with theingredients contained in the capsule.

New machines are now commercially available which are based on an axialclosure movement and no longer on a bayonet-style closure. Thesemachines provide more user convenience, they can be mechanically,electrically or hydraulically assisted for an easier closing and theycan be made of less expensive materials (such as plastic). For instance,a few patents describe different closure principles such as in EP0604615, EP 1090574; EP 1327407; WO 2004/071259 or WO 2005/004683.

Therefore, there is no possibility for the user to control the degree oftightening of the closure about the capsule. As long as theintrinsically defined closed state, of the devices working on an axialclosure movement, is working properly, this leads to satisfying results.If, however, the seal has been damaged or its efficiency has decreasedover time for different reasons (such as due to wear, ageing,obstruction by solid residue, etc.) or also, in the event, the closedposition is misaligned (e.g., horizontally offset vis-a-vis the idealclosure position due to wear, fatigue or manufacturing tolerances),there is the risk of having no tight sealing or even having anundesirable clearance between the enclosing member and the capsule.

According to the prior art, sealing engagement is accomplished by liningthe inner wall and/or pressing edge of the capsule cage with arubber-elastic joint. In other words, according to the prior artapproach, the sealing engagement is assured by a permanent structurewhich is fixed to or attached to the beverage-producing device. This hasthe disadvantage that after intensive use (i.e., over a high number ofextraction cycles), a wearing off of the permanent seal can take placesuch that the extraction conditions of the beverage may deteriorate andquality of the beverage accordingly negatively affected.

In particular, any “leak” at the exterior of the capsule reduces thepressure inside the capsule. On the other hand, a sufficient extractionpressure is a key factor for the quality of espresso-style coffee. Thus,improvements in these type devices are desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention correspondingly aims at an improvement of suchbeverage producing systems which comprises:

a capsule containing beverage ingredients and having a center axis andan outer surface;

a capsule-based beverage producing device provided with a member forinjecting a liquid under pressure into the capsule, a member fordraining a beverage from the capsule, and an enclosing member that ismovable from an opened state to a defined closed state, in which theenclosing member encloses the outer surface of the capsule; and

a sealing member associated with the capsule and which is compressiblewhen engaged by the enclosing member in the closed state, wherein thesealing member is effective to provide a sealing engagement thatcompensates for clearances between the enclosing member and the capsulewhich would otherwise exist when the enclosing member is in its definedclosed state such that the sealing member assures that the liquid canonly flow through the capsule and in contact with the beverageingredients to form a liquid beverage.

The invention also relates to a method for producing a beverage, whichcomprises:

positioning a capsule containing beverage ingredients in a beverageproduction device which includes an enclosing member in an open state toreceive the capsule, wherein the capsule includes a sealing member thatis compressible,

moving the enclosing member of the device from the open state to adefined closed state, while in the final phase of movement of theenclosing member engages and bias the sealing means of the capsule, withthe sealing member providing a sealing engagement that compensates forclearances between the enclosing member and the capsule which wouldotherwise exist when the enclosing member is in the closed state; and

injecting a liquid under pressure into the capsule through at least oneopening in a first wall member and having the liquid leave the capsulethrough at least one opening in a second wall member, such that thesealing member assures that the liquid can only flow through the capsuleand in contact with the beverage ingredients to form a liquid beverage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further advantages, features and objects of the present invention willbecome evident for the skilled artisan when reading the followingdetailed description of embodiments of the present invention taking inconjunction with the figures of the enclosed drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an extraction capsule known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,402,707,

FIG. 2 shows a first embodiment of the present invention in which acapsule is placed on the capsule holder but has not yet reached itsclosing position in the beverage production device,

FIG. 3 shows an enlarged in view of FIG. 2,

FIG. 4 shows the first embodiment in a state, in which a capsule hasreached its closing position between a bell member and the capsuleholder,

FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of a capsule holder, a bell member and acapsule according to the first embodiment in a position in which thecapsule has not yet reached its closing position,

FIG. 6 shows a second embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a detail of FIG. 6,

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the second embodiment,

FIG. 9 shows the second embodiment in a state in which the capsule hasreached its closing position,

FIG. 10 shows a third embodiment in which the sealing member of thecapsule is part of the side wall of the capsule,

FIG. 11 is a detailed view of FIG. 10,

FIG. 12 shows the sealing engagement according to the third embodiment,

FIG. 13 shows a fourth embodiment in which the sealing member is part ofthe top wall member of the capsule, and

FIG. 14 shows the fourth embodiment in the final state.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The invention particularly aims at an improvement of a compensatorysealing engagement between the enclosing member and the outer surface ofthe capsule. Note that the present invention thus especially aims at animprovement of capsules such as are currently used in state-of-the-artbeverage production devices with built-in sealing member such as forexample those shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,402,707, the entire content ofwhich is expressly incorporated herein by reference thereto.

A sealing member is associated with the capsule and is compressible whenengaged by the enclosing member in the closed state such that thesealing member is effective to compensate for the clearance that wouldotherwise exist between the enclosing member and the capsule when theenclosing member is in its defined closed position. The sealing membercan be resilient under compression and be engaged by the enclosingmember in the closed state.

The enclosing member can be arranged such that in the final phase of itstransfer movement form its opened state to its closed state, it carriesout an essentially axial (e.g., linear or curvilinear butnon-rotational) relative movement with regard to the capsule without arelative rotation of the capsule. The enclosing member also can bearranged with regard to the capsule such that during the transfermovement from the opened state to the closed state, the capsuleessentially stays in place.

The sealing member is preferably arranged to exert a biasing forceagainst a matching pressing surface of the beverage production device.Thus, the sealing member is of sufficient thickness to compensate withina certain range of variation of clearance. Preferably, the sealingmember has a thickness (at rest), as measured in the main direction ofthe compressive forces of from 0.5 and 5 mm, preferably of from 1 and 3mm.

The pressing surface is comprised has a linear and/or frustroconicalcontour when seen in a radial section view. The pressing surface canpresent a non-linear contour when seen in a side view. If desired, thecontour of the pressing surface can be provided with corrugations.

The sealing engagement thereby can be designed to be only effective aslong as the enclosing member exerts a minimum compressive force on thecapsule, but is automatically released as soon as the compressive forcefalls below this minimum compressive force. Grooves can be provided inthe circumference of the enclosing member, which grooves act as airinlet passages for feeding air through these grooves and through thereleased sealing engagement between the capsule and the enclosingmember. The preferred sealing member is a rubber-elastic material. Also,the sealing member can be made from the constituent material of thecapsule such as a polymeric material.

The capsule comprises a first and a second wall element being connectedwith each other in an airtight fashion in a flange-like rim area inorder to create a sealed interior for the ingredients. In thisembodiment, the sealing member can be provided at least in thetransition area of the flange-like rim and one of the wall elements. Thesealing member can also be provided on a wall between the flange-likerim and the location on the capsule where the water injector isintroduced. The capsule can be comprised of a cup-like base body and anenclosing member. The sealing member can be present both on theflange-like rim and a portion of a side wall of the base body.

The sealing member can be an integral part of one of the wall elements,or it can be separate to the wall elements. The sealing member has theshape of an O-ring or a ring having a

L-shaped cross-section. The sealing member can be attached to one of thewall elements using an adhesive or by welding or by pinching or crimpingor a combination thereof.

The enclosing member can comprise an additional sealing member adaptedto assist to the sealing engagement between the enclosing member and thecapsule. The sealing pressure acting at the sealing engagement can havea radial and/or axial component relative to the center axis of thecapsule.

The sealing member of the capsule can generally compensate any clearancebetween the enclosing member and the capsule when the enclosing memberis in its defined closed state, which clearance would exist without thecompensatory effect of the sealing member of the capsule. In the finalphase of the transfer movement the enclosing member can at leastpartially compress the sealing member of the capsule to provide asealing engagement that can withstand an internal pressure in the rangeof 2 to 20 bars, preferably 4 to 15 bars.

The term “matching pressing surface” as used herein is typically aportion of the beverage production device. This can be a surface of theenclosing member which is typically one part of the device which coversat least one side of the capsule upon closing of the device to encompassthe capsule. The term “internal pressure” refers to the relativepressure above ambient atmospheric pressure that can be measured in thefluid conduit of the fluid injection device just before the fluid inletin capsule (but downstream of any non-return valve) during extraction.

With reference to FIG. 2 now a first detailed embodiment will beexplained. Note that in the following the invention will be explainedreferring to a certain design of a capsule, i.e., a design according towhich the capsule comprises a cup-like base body and a closing foilmember. However, it is to be understood than other designs of thecapsule are viable, such as e.g. capsules having a lenticular form withtwo essentially matching and opposing walls (e.g., foils) being sealedat the e.g., ring-shaped edge. Generally a capsule according to thepresent invention comprises at least two opposing wall members which areconnected to each other at the edges to form a sealed flange-like rimarea, thus enclosing a sealed interior. These capsules are inserted intothe beverage production device while still being sealed.

Comparable to the prior art also this embodiment shows a capsule holder13 having relief elements 12 which are designed to tear and perforate afoil member 5 closing off a cup-like base body 4 of the capsule 1. Notethat other tearing elements than the relief elements can be used. Thistearing of the foil member can e.g., occur as soon as the pressureinside the capsule exceeds a threshold value. Note that the reliefelements can have any protruding shape able to cause a (partial) tearingof the foil member. As an example only pyramids, needles, bumps,cylinders, elongated ribs are cited. In an alternative, the foil member5 could be replaced by a wall that can be pierced against at least onerelief element before water is injected in the capsule, for instance, asresulting of the closure of the machine about the capsule.

Within the capsule 1 ingredients 3 are contained, wherein theingredients 3 are selected such that a beverage can be produced whenhaving a liquid entering the capsule in the region of the top wall 17 ofthe capsule 1 and then interact which such ingredients 3. Preferredingredients are e.g. ground coffee, tea or any other ingredients fromwhich a beverage or other liquid or viscous comestible (e.g. soup) canbe produced.

FIG. 2 shows a state in which such a capsule has been placed (whilestill being sealed) on a capsule holder 13, the foil member 5 resting onthe relief element 12 side of the capsule holder 13 and the cup-likebase body 4 of the capsule 1 being already partly surrounded by thecircumferential wall 25 of an enclosing member 9 of the beverageproduction device. The shown enclosing member has the shape of a bell.Other shapes are viable, wherein the design of the interior contours(recess) of the enclosing member is generally adapted to substantiallymatch the contours of the capsule 1. Note that the foil member 5 asshown is not exactly flat due to a defined over pressure inside thecapsule, which over pressure is generated by introducing e.g. aprotective gas when producing the filled capsule.

The enclosing (bell) member 9 furthermore comprises an annular supportskirt 18, the function of which will be explained later, an externalthread 19 for mounting the bell member in a beverage production deviceand a water inlet opening 20 for feeding a liquid such as for examplehot water under pressure to a water injector 14 which is releasablemounted (screwed) to the bell member 9. Note that the thread 19 is justan example for a connection member, be it a releasable or permanentconnection member.

The other components of the beverage production device, such as e.g.,the mechanism for displacing the bell member and eventually also thecapsule holder are known from the prior art in the field ofcapsule-based espresso machines and need not be further explainedherein.

The water injector 14 comprises at least one perforation element (blade,pin, etc.) 24 designed to produce at least one opening in the top wall17 of the capsule 1 when the capsule holder 13 and the bell member 9 aremoved close together e.g. by a manually operated or a automaticmechanism. A channel (not shown in the drawings) traverses the waterinjector 14 and perforation element 24 such that water can be fed to theinterior of the capsule 1 once the perforation element 24 protrudes intothe interior of the capsule 1 (see FIG. 4).

The capsule 1 comprises the top wall 17, a sidewall 7 and a flange-likerim 6, wherein the foil member 5 is sealed to the flange-like rim 6 toclose-off hermetically the cup-like base body 4 of the capsule 1. Again,other designs for the capsule are possible as long as the capsule can besealed and contain the mentioned ingredients. For instance, the capsulecan include one of more filters. A bottom filter can be placed incontact with the inner surface of the foil 5 and/or a top filter can beplaced at least partially in contact with the inner surface of the body4.

According to the present invention the outer surface of the capsule 1presents a dedicated sealing member 10. The sealing member 10 can beresilient due to the material used and/or due to the geometrical shapeof the sealing member 10. Further on, the sealing member 10 can beintegral to the capsule 1 or a separate piece. In the latter case thesealing member can be mounted releasably to the base body 4 or fixedthereto e.g. by welding or by an adhesive.

In case the sealing member 10 is a separate piece attached to thecapsule 1, it can be mounted to the capsule as one integral piece.Alternatively it can be applied in fluid or viscous form and then can becured (e.g. polymerized) once applied onto the outer surface of thecapsule, which is the case e.g., when applying silicone.

If a resilient material is used for the sealing member 10, preferablyrubber-elastic materials are used. The term “rubber-elastic” means anysuitable material having rubber elasticity including but not limited toelastomers, silicones, plastics, latex, balata or others. Particularlysuitable materials are: EPDM (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer), NBR(Acrylic Nitrile Rubber), TPE (thermoplastic elastomer) or siliconerubber. These materials have particular good flex, compressiveproperties and can resist high temperatures without cracking In case thematerial of the sealing member is the same as the one used for thecapsule (e.g., a metal such as aluminum or plastics), preferably theresilient nature of the sealing member is procured by the geometricalshape of the sealing member.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 2 the sealing member 10 isresiliently deflectable due to its lip-shaped form 8. It is made fromthe same material as the capsule, preferably plastics. It can be anintegral piece of the base body 4 of the capsule 1. The sealing member10 in the form of a flexible free lip 8 extends from the outer edge ofthe flange-like rim 6 and is inclined outwards. In the shown embodimentthe flexible lip is the edge of the side walls of the base body of thecapsule, which edge is bent by an angle of more than about 90 degrees,preferably comprised between 95 and 175 degrees. Note that suchdeflectable sealing member 10 can be placed at any position onto thecapsule 1 as long as the position is adapted for an exterior sealingengagement of the lip shaped sealing member 8 and the enclosing member 9between the water injector 14 and the perforations in the foil member 5.The sealing member 10 can also be provided on the region of the top wall17 of the capsule 1 surrounding the water injector 14 when the waterinjector 14 is in a position protruding into the interior of the capsule1. The sealing member 10 can also be arranged to cover differentportions (bottom, side wall, flange-like rim) of the capsule.

As can be seen in detail in FIG. 3, the bell member 9 according to thisembodiment does not comprise any dedicated resilient sealing member.However, the bell member optionally can also comprise an (additional)resilient sealing member. A divergently inclined sealing surface 15 ofthe bell member 9 is designed to cooperate with the resilientlydeflectable sealing member 10 of the capsule 1. The inclination of thesealing surface is opposite to the inclination of the free flexible lipconstituting the sealing member. Depending on the form and material ofthe sealing member 9 of the capsule 1, the cooperating surface of thebell member 9 can have any shape, position and orientation which isadapted for a sealing engagement with the sealing member 10 of thecapsule 1.

FIG. 4 shows the state in which the bell member 9 and the capsule holder13 are brought in closing pressure engagement and due to the waterentering the interior of the capsule and building up a pressure therethe pyramidal relief members 12 of the capsule holder 13 have alreadyproduced openings in the foil member 5 of the capsule 1. The closedstate shown in FIG. 4 is an intrinsically set state defined by themachine design and not by the user's manipulation.

In order to be transferred from the opened state of the enclosing member9 shown in FIG. 2 to the closed state shown in FIG. 4, the enclosingmember has undergone an essentially linear relative displacement withregard to the capsule 1. In the present embodiment it is assumed thatthe capsule 1 is not carrying out any displacement and stays in placeduring the closing process. However, alternatively or additionally tothe displacement of the enclosing member 9 also the capsule 1 can carryout an essentially linear movement. In the shown example the capsule 1does not rotate relative to the enclosing member 9.

Upon insertion of the capsule the blade element 24 of the water injector14 has created a perforation 16 in the top wall 17 of the capsule 1.When a sufficient pressure of fluid has been built inside the capsule,the beverage produced from the ingredients contained in the capsule canbe drained in small interstices between the relief members 12 and thesurrounding foil member 5. In the state shown in FIG. 4 the resilientlydeflectable sealing member of the capsule 1 in the form of the flexiblelip 8, is biased against the corresponding inclined sealing surface 15of the enclosing member 9. The annular support skirt 18 now covers theend of the flange-like rim 6 of the capsule 1 to ensure that the sealingmember 10 and the capsule as such remain in position when the sealingsurface 15 of the bell member exerts a certain pressure force on theflexible lip 8.

Actually, the sealing member 8, 10 represents an example of aconstruction for providing a self-reinforcing sealing engagement. Watercoming from the water injector will be pressurized within the intersticebetween the exterior of the capsule and the enclosing member and willeventually arrive at the lip-shaped sealing member. The lip-shapedsealing member will block the water flow as it is biased against thesealing surface of the annular member. This blocking effect will lead tothe pressure raising at the upstream-side of the sealing member which inturn will lead to the sealing member being pressed even stronger againstthe sealing surface and thus to a sealing engagement which is thestronger the higher the pressure at the sealing engagement.

In the embodiment of FIG. 5 grooves 22 are provided in the circumferenceof capsule holder 13, which grooves 22 act to evacuate water which couldsettle or accumulate on the upper surface of the capsule holder 13 ordripping out of the capsule before the capsule has been removed. Thus,when seen in a side view as e.g., in FIG. 5, the enclosing member 9 canpresent circumferential corrugations, with grooves that are shownrepresenting just one example of such corrugations.

The sealing member is designed to compensate/fill such corrugations inthe closed state of the enclosing member 9. However, e.g. due tomanufacturing tolerances, misalignments, wear or fatigue of the parts ofthe beverage production device, even without expressively foreseencorrugations there is always a risk of a clearance and/or insufficienttightness of the sealing engagement between the capsule 1 and theenclosing member 9. According to the present invention, the sealingmember is compressed sufficiently in order to compensate for anyforeseen and/or unforeseen clearance which could exist otherwise.

When seen in a radially sectioned view as e.g., in FIG. 4, the contourof the rim of the enclosing member 9, i.e., the pressing surface, doesnot present radial corrugations. The radial section of the pressingsurface rather presents linear and/or frustroconical sections or acombination thereof. Thus the pressing surface according to the presentinvention is designed to compress or slightly displace the sealingmember.

FIG. 6 shows an embodiment essentially corresponding to a variant of thefirst embodiment of FIG. 2. The sealing member 10 according to thisembodiment is compressible and/or displaceable (i.e., it can slightly“flow” when pressurized by the enclosing member). It covers both aportion of the side wall 7 and the area between the outer end of theflange-like rim 6 of the capsule 1 and the side wall 7. (The sealingmember can also cover only a portion of the side wall 7 of the base body4 of the capsule 1.) The sealing member 10 according to this embodimenthas a non-symmetrical, i.e. L-shaped cross-section. Alternatively, thesealing member 10 can have other shapes such as e.g. a film applied tothe capsule, an O-ring, etc.

When the capsule 1 is in a position as shown in FIG. 4 and then, afterhaving finished the beverage production process, the holder 13 isopened, there is a risk that the capsule 1, instead of falling down,remains sucked into the bell member 9 due a “vacuum effect”. As shown inFIG. 8 the invention proposes to provide for a mechanism which—assuresthat the type sealing engagement between the capsule 1 and the bellmember 9 is only present as long as the bell member 9 is engaged againstthe capsule holder 13, but automatically released such that air can getinto the space between the top wall 17 and the side walls 7 of thecapsule 1 and the inner wall of the bell member 9, respectively.

As can also be seen from FIG. 8, especially in case the sealing member10 covers a portion of the side walls 7 of the capsule 1, the annularfront surface of the bell member 9 can be provided with grooves 21which, act as air inlet passage for feeding air. The grooves allow theintake of air once the biasing force between the bell member 9 and thecapsule holder 13 is released. Air is thus flowing into this space andit will be easier for the user to take out the capsule 1. Eventually,the capsule 1 will even automatically fall down from the bell element 9.

FIG. 9 shows the state of the second embodiment in which the frontsurface 23 of the bell member 9 is in sealing engagement with thesealing member 10 of the capsule 1.

FIGS. 10 to 12 show a third embodiment of the present invention in whichthe resilient nature of the sealing member is due to the geometricalshape of the capsule itself. In the depicted embodiment the sealingmember has the shape of a step 26, i.e. a sudden increase of thediameter of the side wall 7 of the capsule 1. Note that the geometricalform is not limited to the shown step and other forms are viable as longas they procure a resilient or at least deformable nature of the sealingmember.

The step-like sealing member 26 according to this embodiment is only oneexample for a hollow sealing member (in contrast e.g. to the “filled”sealing member 10 according to the second embodiment, FIGS. 6 to 9).When the resiliency of the sealing member is procured by the geometricalshape, usually a deflection of the sealing member occurs (here: inwardsand downwards deformation of the step). On the other hand, when theresilient nature is due to the material used and a “filled” sealingmember is used, usually a compression and/or displacement of thematerial occurs.

The sealing surface 15 according to this embodiment is inclined. Thusthe sealing pressure has a first component being directed radiallyinside and another component being directed axially (downwards in FIG.12). As can be seen especially from FIG. 12, the foil member 5 can bewrapped (see reference 27) over the rim of the capsule.

FIGS. 13 and 14 show a fourth embodiment in which the sealing member isan O-ring 11. The O-ring is geometrically arranged and, preferablyfixed, on the top wall 17 of the capsule 1. This is just an example ofproviding a sealing member at the exterior of the capsule 1 at the sidewhich faces the water injector and which will be perforated in order tocreate the water inlets to the capsule 1. The O-ring 11 is positioned toperipherally surround the area in which the water injector 14 perforatesthe top wall 17 of the capsule 1. The sealing member 11 is thuscompressed by the bottom 28 of the enclosing member 9 and (see FIG. 14)secured in place by the upper end of the circumferential side wall 25 ofthe enclosing member 9.

Note that the bottom 28 can be substantially flat or inclined to ensurea sufficiently water-tight interface with the sealing member 11 when thecapsule is fully engaged in the enclosing member 9 at closing of thedevice. As an alternative to the O-ring 11, also a deflectable lip-likesealing member (e.g. comparable to the lip 8 according to the firstembodiment, see FIG. 2) can be placed protruding from the top wall 17 ofthe capsule 1, i.e. the wall facing the water injector 14. In any case,the bottom 28 will exert an axial compression force on the sealingmember 11. In case, e.g., an O-ring is placed on the side wall 7 of thecapsule 1, the radial component of the compression force will prevail.

What is claimed is:
 1. A beverage producing system comprising: a capsulecontaining beverage ingredients and having a center axis; a cup-shapedbody comprising a top wall and a sidewall having an outer surface, withthe top wall and sidewall configured for defining a cavity that containsbeverage forming ingredients therein and with the sidewall including arim-like flange forming a periphery of the sidewall, which flangeincludes transverse and axial extensions; a foil member sealed to theflange of the body to retain the beverage forming ingredients in thecavity; and a capsule-based beverage producing device provided with amember for injecting a liquid under pressure into the capsule, a memberfor draining a beverage from the capsule, and an enclosing member thatis movable from an opened state to a defined closed state, in which theenclosing member encloses the outer surface of the capsule; and adedicated ring-like sealing member which is not part of the foil memberand is present on the rim of the flange opposite the foil member to formpart of the capsule, which sealing member is compressible when engagedby the enclosing member in the closed state; wherein the dedicatedring-like sealing member is formed upon the transverse extension of theflange such that when compressed by the enclosing member in the closedstate provides a sealing engagement that compensates for clearancesbetween the enclosing member and the capsule which would otherwise existwhen the enclosing member is in the closed state such that the sealingmember assures that the liquid can only flow through the capsule and incontact with the beverage ingredients to form a liquid beverage.
 2. Thesystem according to claim 1, wherein the sealing member is made of amaterial that is resilient under compression when it is engaged by theenclosing member in the closed state to provide a sealing pressure thathas a radial or axial component relative to the center axis of thecapsule.
 3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the enclosingmember and sealing member provide a sealing engagement that withstands apressure in the range of 2 to 20 bars.
 4. The system according to claim1, wherein the enclosing member is arranged such that during a finalphase of its movement from the opened to closed state, it carries out anessentially axial relative movement with regard to the capsule without arelative rotation of the capsule.
 5. The system according to claim 1,wherein the enclosing member is arranged with regard to the capsule suchthat it essentially stays in place during the transfer movement.
 6. Thesystem according to claim 1, wherein the sealing member is arranged toexert a biasing force against a matching pressing surface of thebeverage production device.
 7. The system according to claim 6, whereinthe pressing surface of the beverage production device has a linear orfrustoconical contour when seen in a radial section view and anon-linear contour when seen in a side view.
 8. The system according toclaim 6, wherein the contour of the pressing surface of the beverageproduction device includes corrugations.
 9. The system according toclaim 1, wherein the sealing member is made of a rubber-elastic materialor is made from the same constituent material from which the capsule ismade and has the shape of an O-ring or a ring having a L-shapedcross-section.
 10. The system according to claim 1, further comprisingfirst and second wall elements connected with each other in an airtightfashion in a flange-like rim area of the capsule in order to create asealed interior for the capsule ingredients.
 11. The system according toclaim 10, wherein the sealing member is provided between the flange-likerim and one of the wall elements, on a side wall between the flange-likerim and the location on the capsule where the water injector isintroduced, or on both.
 12. The system according to claim 10, whereinthe sealing member forms an integral part of a wall element or isseparate from such wall elements.
 13. The system according to claim 10,wherein the sealing member is attached to one of the wall elements usingan adhesive, by welding by pinching, by crimping or by any combinationof such attachments.
 14. The system according to claim 1, wherein thesealing engagement has sufficient resiliency to be effective as long asthe enclosing member exerts a minimum pressure on the capsule, but isautomatically released as soon as the pressure falls below the minimumpressure.
 15. The system according to claim 1, wherein the enclosingmember includes grooves about its circumference which act as air inletpassages for feeding air through the released sealing engagement betweenthe capsule and the enclosing member.
 16. The system according to claim1, wherein the enclosing member comprises additional sealing memberadapted to assist in the sealing engagement between the enclosing memberand the capsule.
 17. The system according to claim 1, further comprisingfirst and second wall elements connected with each other in an airtightfashion in a flange-like rim area of the capsule in order to create asealed interior for the capsule ingredients, wherein the sealing memberis provided between the flange-like rim and one of the wall elements, ona side wall between the flange-like rim and the location on the capsulewhere the water injector is introduced, or on both.
 18. The systemaccording to claim 17, wherein the sealing member is made of a materialthat is resilient under compression and that when compressed provides asealing pressure that has a radial or axial component relative to thecenter axis of the capsule such that the sealing member provides asealing engagement that withstands a pressure in the range of 2 to 20bars.
 19. The system according to claim 18, wherein the sealing memberis made of a rubber-elastic material or is made from the sameconstituent material from which the capsule is made and has the shape ofa ring having a L-shaped cross-section.
 20. The system according toclaim 19, wherein the sealing member forms an integral part of a wallelement or is separate from such wall elements.
 21. The system accordingto claim 18, wherein the sealing member is made of a rubber-elasticmaterial or is made from the same constituent material from which thecapsule is made and has the shape of an O-ring.
 22. The system accordingto claim 17, wherein the sealing member is attached to the flange-likerim or one of the wall elements using an adhesive, by welding bypinching, by crimping or by any combination of such attachments.